HC dismisses petition challenging presidential poll

The Madras high court on Monday slapped a petitioner with costs of Rs 25,000 for seeking a stay on the presidential election.

A division bench, comprising Chief Justice B Subhashan Reddy and Justice D Murugesan, dismissed at the admission stage the Public Interest Litigation filed by one N Aruldhas of Kanyakumari.

The bench described the petition as a "publicity interest litigation" and asked how it could be sustained.

Contending that under Article 54 of the Constitution state legislators and members of Parliament could vote in the presidential poll, the petitioner, who argued as party-in-person, claimed that since the word "only" was missing it indicated that there should be other votes also.

Hence the general public should be allowed to elect the President, he said and sought a direction to the Election Commission forbearing it from conducting the poll.